Apparatus for power development



Dec. 18, 1945. THOMSEN I 2,391,078

APPARATUS FOR POWER DEVELOPMENT Filed June 16, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 1NVEN TOR.

Dec. 18, 1945. A, M. THOMSEN 2,391,073

APPARATUS FOR POWER DEVELOPMENT Filed June 16, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INV EN TOR.

Patented Dec. 18, 1945 V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE APPARATUS FOR POWERDEVELOPMENT Alfred M. Thomson, San Francisco, Calif.

Application June 16, 1942, Serial No. 447,293

Claims.

This invention deals in general with means whereby a substantiallygreater conversion of the heat energy of a fuel into mechanical energycan be achieved than is considered standard in modern steam engineeringor in internal combustion. For this reason it is rather diflicult toclassify my invention for it partakes of the nature of both and alsoinvolves certain features that were a part of the hot air or caloricengines of last century, even including in this category some of thethermodynamic abstractions that were never built.

For this reason I shall commence at once with a description of thethermodynamic functions involved. I believe that this object will bebest attained by the use of the diagrammatic drawings attached hereto.It should be borne in mind that this diagram does not represent anyactual engine but consists solely of conventional figures used in anydiscussion of thermodynamics.-

.Referring, therefore, to the drawings, Fig. 1, same will be seen toconsist of two identical structures, subsequently referred to as theright and left divisions, and between them and interconnected with thema third structure, diversefrom the former structures. Throughout thedrawings the same number has been placed upon identical parts save whereinterconnected with the third structure. Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 illustrate ina schematic manner the approximate position of certain parts, thepistons, at two different positions in the cycle.

Commencing, therefore, with the left hand structure, this is seen toconsist of two doubly interconnected vessels 2 and 3, theinterconnections being numbered respectively, I and 8. The lowerinterconnection, numbered I, is sealed by a body of liquid, hereafterreferred to as water,

but not limited to this appellation. This water fills the space betweenthe piston 4 and the natural surface of said water. To prevent waveaction in said body of water a float 24 rests upon said surface.

This body of water is kept in a state of oscillation, constant inamplitude, by means of the movements of the piston 4. In the drawingsthis piston is represented as close-fitting, but this is not essential,for, as will be seen later on, the vapor pressure above 24 and above 4is equal and the piston in question performs no work save that ofovercoming friction and of maintaining the water in motion.

By each oscillation, the gaseous fluid which fills the space notoccupied by water in-the vessels 2 and 3 is thus seen to be alternatelytransferred from one vessel to the other through the upperinterconnection 8. This upper interconnection functions as a regeneratorand. is filled with a packing 9 exposing a very large surface to'thecontact of the gaseous fluid when it is being transferred from 2 to 3,or from 3 to 2. It is the object of the invention to maintain adifierential in temperature between the gaseous fluid when it occupieseither one or the other of these two vessels and, hence, in the transferin one direction or the other, heat is either abstracted from orconveyed to said gas in its passage through the regenerator. In thedrawings, the packing 9 is represented as plates but actual constructionis optional. The material used for such packing is likewise optional andmay vary from plain iron through the entire gamut of ferrous andnonferrous alloys, some type of stainless steel being most appropriate.

Heat is supplied to said gaseous fluid by the injection of both air andfuel. These are'seen as entering by the valved ducts II and I2, into thecombustion chamber l0, which is represented as havin insulated walls toset it apart from the rest of the structure. Parenthetically it may benoted that such an insulated combustion chamber will require no meansfor ignition of the charge save the stored heat in its walls. As thecontinuous injection of both air and fuel would soon raise the pressureto a prohibitive degree, the surplus is vented at the valve l6, thuskeeping conditions at each oscillation constant. In the drawings, thisvalve and all other valves are represented as actuated by the variationsin pressure of the working fluids and as loaded by springs to ensureclosing.

Inasmuch as the constant addition of heat is more positive than thelosses of heat sustained by conversion of a part of said heat intomechanical energy, the gradual effect upon the regenerator would be tohave the temperature steadily increase so that'the differential betweenthe twovessels 2 and 3 would gradually become impaired. To prevent thiseffect a cooler I3 is introduced. It 0 nsists as indicated of a spraypipe whereby th gaseous working fluid on each transfer is subjected tointimate contact with the body of water previously described. It isobvious that such a spray may be either constant or intermittent as longas it is adequate in volume to remove the residual heat to a constantfactor. In the drawings it is represented as constant. Unless the piston4 were of a loose type this would demand that some means be also used toequalize the volume of water on either side of said piston,

but as such matters pertain to engine design and not to thethermodynamics of the cycle they have been omitted from the drawings,which as already 4 said is but a diagrammatic representation of thethermodynamics involved. Similarly, the means employed to introduce themoving body of water, or rather a part thereof, into intimate contactwith the gaseous fluid, i. e., pumps and pipes, have been deliberatelyomitted so as not to clutter up the diagram.

Having thus described the first part of the drawings, the heat cyclepertaining thereto will 'next'be explained in full detail beforeproceeding with the balance of the presentation. It is suggested,meanwhile, that the opening and duct I4 be disregarded as if it were notpresent, but that the wall of the vessel 3 at this point be consideredas closed.

To follow the cycle through one complete oscillation let the start bemade with the piston in the position indicated in the drawings. As saidpiston now rises to the other extreme position the gaseous fluid in 3will become gradually transferred into 2 and passing through theregenerator 8 it will pick up heat on the way, hence the pressure of thegaseous fluid will be increased in accordance with the well known lawsof expansion of gases by heat.

On the return stroke of the piston the gaseous fluid will part with aportion of its heat to the regenerator and any surplus will becomeabstracted by the spray l3. The conditions of temperature and pressurewill thus have been restored, provided that the increase of pressureduring the upstroke was not suificiently great to cause the relief valveI6 to function and equalize the pressure.

To get the effect of the heating addition, to wit, Ill, II and I2, letit nowbe supposed that as the piston approaches its lowest position andis say, 30 of an are before the dead center, when the pressure withinthe enclosed space filled withthe gaseous fluid is almost at its extremelow, then the valves I I and I2, being pressure actuated, will open anddischarge both 'fuel and air into the combustion chamber-l which willburn, so that very hot combustion products stream out of IO andcommingle with the last portion of the gaseous fluid being-transferred.It will be evident that the heat thus added will be absorbed almost inits entirety by the regenerator and there will be but a small rise inpressure due to the additional volume of the air added. Timing in theadmission of air and fuel is, of course, immaterial so long as thesupply is adequate to furnish the necessary amount of heat.

On the return stroke, however, this heat will be given off to the gas onits passage through the regenerator and in addition will be augmented bythe additional hot gases leaving I0 until the air and fuel are again outoff due to the increase in pressure in chamber I0, say when the pistonhas passed another 30 of an arc on the other side of the dead center.The result will be a great rise in pressure when the piston reaches thetop of its stroke.

This excess of pressure will then cause the valve IE to function untilequilibrium is again restored. It will thus be seen that the airinjected at II, at the low pressure point of the cycle, is rejected bythe engine at the high point of pressure. The assembly, as thus fardescribed, therefore, constitutes in effect a thermo-co-mpressor whichtakes in relatively cold air at II, and discharges air, commingled withcombustion products, likewise relatively cool, at I6. The increase inpressure thus obtained is evidently by a purely thermic method and notby impressing mechanical energy thereupon, for as already explained, thepiston d performs no function save the transfer of the gaseous fluidfrom one vessel to the other.

The oscillating body of water isseen to serve two purposes. .It acts asa displacing piston in the transfer of the working fluid from one vesselto another and at the same time it provides the essential coolingfunction. When the water level sinks in the vessel 2, its walls becomeexposed to the hot gas fire gases. As there is no moving part in contactwith such walls they might conceivably be lined with flrebrick on theinside, or otherwise insulated, but in any event even such lining wouldbe exposed to the hot fire gases during a part of the cycle.

Now on the second half of the cycle these walls become covered. withwater and the heat which said walls have abstracted from the gases is inturn conveyed to the moving water which consequently becomes heated. Thesame effect is produced by the use of the same medium as the coolingagent in the spray pipe I3, so in due time this body of water will beraised to boiling temperature and the absorbed sensible heat will beonce more liberated as heat of vaporization of steam, said steamcommingling with and forming a part of the working fluid. In time,therefore, the gaseous fluid which is the working fluid of the enginebecomes a mixture of the products of combustion of the fuel injected atl2 commingled with the steam arising from the cooling function performedby the oscillating body of water. However, if it be at times desirableto keep said oscillating body of water below the boiling point, then thewalls of the containing vessel, numbered I, 2 and 3 in the drawings, orany part thereof, being necessarily of metal and hence good conductorsof heat, can manifestly be made the means for such abstraction of heat,reducing the temperature of the contained water to any extent desired.

At each stroke of the piston 4, when it reaches the top ofits stroke, orshortly before and after that point, the valve IE will open and permitthe excess volume of gaseous working fluid to escape into the receiverI8. The composition will, of course, be identical with that alreadycited as the temperature of emission must be well above that of theboiling point of water. Such a spasmodic release of highly compressedgases requires equalization before it be used in a prime mover, hencethe representation of the receiver I8 to perform this function.Manifestly, the diiference in pressure on either side of the valve l6,will be kept as low as possible.

So far the explanation of the drawings has been confined to the lefthand structure, with the exception of the air receiver. The right handstructure will now be considered. It will be seen to be identicalthroughout with the one already described. The motions of the twopistons 3 are synchronized; the piston rods 5 passing out from thevessels 3 through the stufling box 6 to connect with the rocker arm Iwhich has its fulcrum at 25, by which said pistons are moved. In thedrawings, said motion is imparted through the instrumentality of atoothed quadrant 26 attached to the rocker arm and a pinion 2'! which inturn is actuated by an electric motor equipped with a self-reversingdevice. As such motion controls the entire operation within thecomponent parts it need not be connected to the prime mover, which inthe drawing is a turbine 28 in which the compressed working fluid isfinally expanded and converted into mechanical energy.

The function of the assembly as so far explained is, therefore, to takein compressed air and fuel at I l and I2, respectively, and to produce asmooth flow of a mixture of nitrogen, surplus oxygen,

, carbon dioxide, and steam issuing from the receiver l8 in thedirection of the arrow, to a prime mover which-may be of any design ortype selected. Manifestly, this mixture of gases and steam is at a farhigher pressure than the incoming compressed air, and the fuel burnedhas in part been converted into energy represented by this increase ofpressure and by the steam simultaneously generated.

The central structure will now be explained. It is seen to consist of acylinder 19 within which movesa piston 20, the piston rod 2| passing outthrough the stuffing box 22. I4 and I! are ducts leading from the spacesbelow and above the piston 20 to the cool gas spaces of the right andleft structures formerly described.

Inasmuch as these structures are synchronized it followsthat when thepressurewithin one of thesestructuresis at its highest point it is atits lowest within the other structure. The piston 20 will thus beactuated by this change and will rise and fall in harmony with thepressures alternating within the right and left hand structures. Itfollows that if the piston rod 2i be connected in any suitable mannerwith the mechanism it is proposed to move then energy will be obtainedfrom the expansion of the gases alternately functioning on either sideof said piston.

Such expansion will represent a corresponding drop in temperature of theexpanding gas and will, therefore, require less use of the coolingsprays l3 within the primary structures. This in turn means less steamgeneration, and steam generation is the poorest utilization made of thefuel consumed as it is unavoidably accompanied by the loss of heat whensuch steam condenses.

by the fluid indicated in the drawings. All such modifications I regardas within the scope of this disclosure.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim:

"1. In an apparatus for converting the major part of the heat energy offuel into mechanical energy the combination of two doubly interconnectedvessels, one interconnection containing a regenerator and the otherinterconnection being sealed by a liquid'displacer; means for keepingthe liquid displacer in oscillation; means for injecting fuel and airfor combustion of same into one vessel and means for periodicallyreleasing an equivalent volume of the products of said combustion fromthe .other vessel; a suitable prime mover for converting the energyresident in said vented gases into mechanical energy and means forconveying said vented gases to said prime mover. v I

2. In an apparatus for converting the major part of the heat energy offuel into mechanical energy as set forth in claim 1; the addition ofmeans for bringing the products of combustion Contrariwise, the energyobtained within the third structure represents an'almost theoreticalconversion of heat into mechanical energy, the

of course, be most carefully insulated against such heat losses, itfollows that radiation losses will be very small. It is not too much tosay that the main reason for obtaining the compressed fluid which isvented to the prime mover is so as to make available the maximum use ofthe third structure indicated on the drawin s. This portion is actuallythe most important part of the invention and the complex structures toboth right and left function chiefly to make its operation possible.

A great many conventional modifications can, of course, be made withoutdeparting from the spirit of theinvention herein disclosed, such forinstance as substituting valves moved by the mechanism instead of the"clack" valves operated only losses being in friction and in radiationlosses. In as much 'as the entire assembly will,

that have passed through the heat regenerator and have not yet beenvented into intimate contact with a portionof the liquid displacer thusreducing their temperature approximately to that of the displacer.

3. In an apparatus for converting the major part of the heat energy offuel into mechanical energy the combination of; two vessels, doublyinterconnectedat different levels, the upper interconnection containinga heat-regenerator, the lower interconnection being sealed with anoscillating body of water; means for maintaining said water in a stateof oscillation; means for injecting fuel and airy for combustion of sameinto one vessel and means for periodically releasing an equivalentvolume of the products of said combustion from the other vessel; meansfor bringing said products of combustion into intimate contact with aportion of the oscillating body of water thus correspondingly reducingtheir temperature;

' a suitable prime mover and means for connecting same to the hereindescribed vessel so that the vented fluid may pass through said primemover and have the energy stored therein converted intov mechanicalenergy.

4. In an apparatus for converting the major part ofthe heat energy offuel into mechanical energy as set forth in claim 3; the addition ofmeans for abstracting heat from the oscillating body of water, thuscontrolling the relative percentage of water vapor in the vented gases.

5. In an apparatus for convertingthe major part of the heat energy offuel into mechanical energy as set forth in claim 3; the addition ofmeans for utilizing the expansion of a portion of the working fluidindoing mechanical work while it yet remains a portion of the confinedworking fluid.

AIFRED M. THOMSEN.

